San Francisco Chronicle - (Sunday)
BACKERS SPEAK OUT
The Bay Area’s psychedelic community was forced underground 50 years ago when the drugs were made illegal by the federal government, and although many thousands of people continued to use psychedelics, they largely kept quiet about it.
Oakland’s resolution to decriminalize plantbased psychedelics may have removed a lot of the risk, but magic mushrooms and other hallucinogenics are still illegal, and even some of their fiercest proponents remain hesitant to speak openly about their personal experiences.
A new generation of users may have a different perspective.
Carlos Plazola decided that he would go public with his use of psychedelics when he cofounded the decriminalization campaign earlier this year, a few months after taking mushrooms for the first time. He said he felt a responsibility to put his name behind the drugs that he found so personally helpful to his mental health.
“Psychedelics could have tremendous benefit to people who are really suffering. It’s almost a duty for me to speak about it,” he said.
Not everyone who worked with the decriminalization campaign felt comfortable coming out. Some were willing to talk about their experiences in public forums, but not if their name would be revealed. Others agreed to work behind the scenes because they felt passionate about the cause but worried about losing jobs or friends.
“It may not be something where we’re getting arrested,” said Larry Norris, executive director of the nonprofit Entheogenic Research, Integration and Education. “But I know a couple people with (the decriminalization campaign) felt like they needed to step back because they were looking for jobs or something.
“In the long run it’s more about a stigma thing — the types of things that can make you a pariah in society outside of just being arrested,” he said.
Some users have been part of the underground community for so long that they have a hard time believing it’s safe to surface now, said one supporter of the campaign who doesn’t want his name to be public.
Plazola said he realizes that he is able to speak out because he comes from a place of relative security that not everyone shares. He’s already told his family and friends about using the drugs and they’ve supported him. He’s friends with a lot of lawyers who will have his back, he says with a laugh.
People he works with may not know — yet. But the psychedelics helped him with anger and anxiety issues that may have improved his professional relationships.
“People on the business side probably find they enjoy working with me more now,” he joked. “This isn’t going to negatively affect people’s perspective of me.”
“Psychedelics could have tremendous benefit to people who are really suffering. It’s almost a duty for me to speak about it.” Carlos Plazola, spearheaded decriminalization effort